From a press release:
Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha co-led
a coalition of 21 attorneys general in filing an amicus brief in support of two
lawsuits brought by National Public Radio (NPR) and
the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) that seek to
block proposed funding cuts to their organizations and local affiliates.
“Make no mistake: when the Trump Administration attacks
NPR and PBS, they are attempting to severely limit the public’s right to
receive critical information,” said Attorney General Neronha. “NPR and PBS are
American institutions responsible for delivering emergency information,
educational programming, and reliable news, all of which Americans use to
inform how they live their lives. These massive cuts would have dramatically
negative impacts on the flow of public information, especially in rural and
tribal areas, with potentially life-threatening consequences. We must fight to
protect every American’s ability to access information, regardless of income
level or zip code. We must fight to protect our public stations.”
At issue in the case is an executive order signed by
President Trump on May 1 directing the board of the Corporation for
Public Broadcasting and executive branch agencies to end federal
funding for NPR and PBS. On May 27, NPR and three Colorado public radio
stations—Colorado Public Radio, Aspen Public Radio, and
tribal-serving KSUT in southwestern Colorado—sued to block the
proposed cuts. PBS and a Minnesota-based affiliate filed a separate lawsuit on
May 30.
The coalition of attorneys general, led by those from Rhode Island, Colorado, Arizona, and Minnesota, argues that public broadcast stations serve a critical role in delivering information to the public, and the proposed cuts would severely harm Americans.
The coalition maintains that the funding cuts would create risks to public safety and erode trust by threatening coverage of local news, disrupting the distribution of emergency notifications, reducing critical educational services, and limiting public media’s unique reach to rural and tribal audiences.
In the brief, filed concurrently today in both lawsuits, the
coalition outlines some of the harms people in their states will face if the
cuts move forward. These include threats to emergency notification systems,
such as the Emergency Alert System (EAS). Many states,
including Rhode Island, rely on public broadcast stations to serve as primary
or secondary sources for delivering EAS messages to the public during
emergencies. Additionally, other infrastructure provided by NPR and PBS serves
as an important backup for emergency notifications in the event of electrical
or internet outages.
Other emergency notifications disseminated via public media
include Amber Alerts for abducted children, Blue Alerts for notifying the
public of suspects who have killed or seriously injured law enforcement
officers, Silver Alerts used when older people or people with developmental
disabilities go missing, and Missing Indigenous Person Alerts that are critical
for tribal communities.
The brief also outlines the important educational roles that
public broadcasters serve. This past year, Rhode Island’s PBS and NPR member
stations (which recently merged into Ocean State Media) won two Edward R.
Murrow awards, including one for coverage of Rhode Island elections.
Finally, the brief highlights the disproportionate threats to rural and tribal areas posed by the cuts. Ocean State Media is one of the only sources of news accessible without a paywall or other payment restriction, especially in underserved areas like Block Island, Pawtucket, and Tiverton.
Joining Attorney General Neronha in filing the brief are the
attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware,
District of Columbia, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota,
Nevada, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Vermont, and Washington.
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